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Dog caught in Hastings, Minn., fire given mouth-to-mouth by girl

Tara Mauch of Hastings gives mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a dog saved from a burning house in Hastings on Monday morning.

HASTINGS, Minn. -- Two dogs were rescued from a house fire Monday, with one of them receiving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation from a neighbor.

The dogs were rescued from a burning home by firefighters from the Hastings Fire Department.

The Hastings home caught fire about 11:30 a.m. Monday. The residents were not home at the time, but their two dogs and a rabbit were.

After firefighters knocked down the flames enough to enter the home, they found the two pets and rushed them outside into the arms of a family member. One white dog was struggling to breathe, and that's when neighbor Tara Mauch jumped in. While the dog was held by another bystander, Mauch began giving the dog mouth-to-mouth.

"I was just trying to blow the air out of his lungs," she said.

What she did apparently helped the dog. Shortly thereafter, the second dog was rescued by firefighters. The two were then taken, by family members and a neighbor, to a nearby veterinarian for care.

Mauch had arrived earlier and when she heard there were two dogs inside, she got herself prepared. When the moment came she didn't hesitate.